Work has started on a new £7.6 million health centre in Aberdeen.

The three-storey Foresterhill Health Centre is being delivered by Morrison Construction, Robertson FM and hub North Scotland. The project is scheduled to finish construction by mid 2018.

The facility will house two GP practices, Elmbank Group Practice and Westburn Medical Group, and serve more than 15,000 patients.

In addition, it will host a retail pharmacy as well as a base for staff from Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership. It will also offer dedicated space for Allied Health Professionals.

Speaking after the turf-cutting ceremony on Thursday, 23 March, Project Director for NHS Grampian Stan Mathieson said: "We are pleased to formally mark the beginning of construction today. This is a moment that has been several years in the making and is another important milestone for the project.

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"In addition to the enhanced GP facilities for Elmbank and Westburn, the health centre will allows us to bring together staff from across a range of disciplines in a single setting. That will have real benefits for patients and allow health and social care staff to come together and provide a seamless service."

NHS Grampian Chairman Stephen Logan said the construction of the new health centre is part of the health boards plan to build £150 million in new facilities on the Foresterhill Health Campus over the next five years.

"This is a crucial moment for the future of health and social care in Aberdeen," he said.

"Not only will this offer an opportunity to provide a huge step forwards in the standard of facilities available to users of Foresterhill Health Centre, the relocation of the existing building will pave the way for the £150 million new ANCHOR cancer centre and Baird Family Hospital.

"These will be truly world class facilities and the benefits they bring shouldn't be underestimated. They will also help us attract medical professionals from across the country and further afield.

"This is a proud moment for NHS Grampian and mark a vital step towards ensuring we that are able to continue providing first class care at Foresterhill for generations to come."

(LM/MH)